Press

15 DECEMBER 2006, PHILADELPHIA, PA—On Friday, 15 December 2006 Penn Museum's all-volunteer Women's Committee handed over a giant-sized check--one with five zeros before the decimal point--to Museum Director Jeremy Sabloff, at their monthly meeting. Women's Committee Chair Mrs. Stephen Goff (Marguerite) passed the honor of handing over the check to Mrs. Cummins Catherwood (Susan), Mrs. Robert E. McQuiston (Missy), and Mrs. Michael Heavener (Suchinda), co-chairs of the Women's Committee's second annual show and sale, "TREASURES...from the Silk Road to the Santa Fe Trail." An additional $3,000 was donated to the museum in honor of each chair.

19 DECEMBER 2006, PHILADELPHIA, PA—Tena Thomason, Penn Museum’s Special Events Coordinator, is the latest recipient of the Director’s Award—established by the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology to honor exceptional staff and volunteer achievement. Dr. Jeremy A. Sabloff, Director of the University of Pennsylvania Museum, surprised Ms Thomason with the presentation this morning, at a weekly senior staff meeting.

19 DECEMBER 2006, PHILADELPHIA, PA—Squeal for joy! The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology ushers in the Year of the Pig Saturday, 20 January 2007 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., with its 26th annual Chinese New Year Celebration! Music and dance performances, food, healing and martial arts demonstrations, games, workshops, arts, crafts, children's activities and much more—topped off with the traditional Chinese Lion Dance grand finale—are all part of the spectacular day-long celebration, FREE with Museum admission donation ($8 general admission; $5 students and seniors; free for children under 6, Museum members and PennCard holders).

09 JANUARY 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—Dr. Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities of Egypt and Director of excavations at the Giza Pyramids, Saqqara, and Bahariya Oasis, offers a special public talk, “The Riddle of the Pyramids and the Magic of King Tut,” Thursday, February 1 at 6:00 p.m. in the Harrison Auditorium of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Philadelphia.

14 JANUARY 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—Music and dance of Africa and the African diaspora, storytelling, arts and crafts, culture and cuisine—it all comes together at the 18th annual Celebration of African Cultures Saturday, 17 February from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. throughout the galleries of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. The event, an annual extravaganza, is FREE with Museum admission donation ($8 for adults; $5 students and senior citizens; free for Museum members, children under 6, and PENNcard holders).

26 JANUARY 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—For the summer of 2007, adventurous children ages 7 through 13 can participate in a day camp that takes them through time and across continents—at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology on Penn's campus in Philadelphia.

29 JANUARY 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—Penn Museum was host this morning to six Egyptians—five conservators and an archaeologist—in Philadelphia to help with the installation of the blockbuster exhibition, “Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs” at The Franklin Institute.

Joining them was a film crew from the National Geographic Television and Film company, documenting the visit for use in an upcoming, PBS documentary, “Inside: The King Tut Exhibit” (working title) to run in the fall of 2007.

30 JANUARY 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—Dr. C. Brian Rose, Curator-in-Charge of the Mediterranean Section at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology and the James B. Pritchard Professor of Archaeology in the Department of Classical Studies, School of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania, was elected the 30th President of the Archaeological Institute of America. The four-year appointment, which began 06 January 2007, runs through 2010.

The architectural remains of ancient Rome were a major source of inspiration to renowned 18th century Italian artist Giovanni Battista Piranesi, whose remarkable etchings captured the melancholy splendor of “ruined Rome” as never before. Piranesi: The Grandeur of Ancient Rome, an exhibition of 60 of Piranesi’s etchings, original prints from the 18th century, comes to the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, 3260 South Street in Philadelphia.

23 FEBRUARY 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—Internationally-renowned beer expert Michael Jackson, also known as The Beer Hunter®, returns to the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology for his 17th annual visit on March 9th and 10th, when he presides over two special programs: a Friday evening beer dinner, and the ever-popular Saturday beer tastings.

On Friday, March 9th at 6:30 p.m., Penn Museum and Museum Catering Company present an "Extreme Beer Dinner," a reception and three course dinner offered in the Museum's Lower Egyptian gallery and featuring some of Michael Jackson's selections of fine beers. Mr. Jackson, author of The Great Beer Guide, and the Pocket Guide to Beer, has selected beers branded “extreme” for their exotic flavors and power to thrill taste buds. Dinner reservations are $75; Museum members, $60. For reservations, call 215/898-4890.

07 MARCH 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—Of all the times in ancient Egypt’s long history, the Amarna Period (circa 1353 to 1336 BCE) is one of the most intriguing. In little more than a generation, the religious, artistic, and political order of Egyptian civilization was radically altered—and then restored. Egyptologists continue to make important discoveries about this time—and to debate their meaning.

On Saturday, March 31, the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology hosts a gathering of prominent Egyptologists from two continents, offering a variety of perspectives on this revolutionary period. “Amarna: New Research and Discoveries in the Age of Akhenaten and Tutankhamun,” a full day public symposium, is co-sponsored by Archaeology Magazine and the Center for Ancient Studies at the University of Pennsylvania.

23 MARCH 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—On 06 January 2007, the Embassy of Haiti in Washington, DC celebrated the 203rd anniversary of Haiti’s independence, which also marks the birth of the first independent black nation and the only nation ever formed from a successful slave revolt. Penn Museum’s Publications Department, in cooperation with photographer Andrea Baldeck, donated 500 copies of Baldeck’s book The Heart of Haiti for distribution at the four-day gala. The book is a collection of 50 black and white tritone prints of photographs that Baldeck took while visiting Haiti several times in the 1980s and 90s. Baldeck’s first experience of Haiti was as a volunteer physician at the Valley’s Hôpital Albert Schweitzer in 1981. Moved by the resilience of its people, she returned as a photographer in the mid-90’s and provided both Creole and English translations of Haitian proverbs to accompany her photographs.

02 APRIL 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—More than 250 people from several continents gathered at Penn Museum on 27-28 March 2007 for the annual Paleoanthropology Society Meeting. The two-day conference was held in the Harrison Auditorium, with a bustling afternoon Poster Session on Tuesday afternoon, when Paleoanthropology researchers presented their research in a more informal session. Topics ranged from fossil fauna in Zambia, to assessment of age at death in Neandertal dental remains, to consideration of an "optimal" speed for human running. Founded in 1992, the Paleoanthropology Society includes researchers who deal with human evolution through several fields: archaeology, physical anthropology, genetics, geology, and dating.

Mommies Can Celebrate Mother’s Day a Little Early as Moms Get in FREE When Accompanied by Their Children

09 APRIL 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology continues its “Year of Egypt” programming Saturday, May 5th, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., with a special pre-Mother’s Day Mummy Day celebration, featuring tours of the ancient Egyptian mummy gallery, talks on motherhood, mummies, and embalming in ancient Egypt, music from Verdi’s classic opera “Aida,” ancient Egyptian-style crafts and games for the family—and treats for moms. With Mother’s Day just a week away, moms of all ages get in FREE, when accompanied by their child or children!

10 APRIL 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—The Voice of America, a multimedia international broadcasting service funded by the U.S. government, named Penn Museum its Website of the Week on April 6th 2007. Reporter Art Chimes interviewed Penn Museum interim director Jerry Sabloff about the website's content. "The University of Pennsylvania Museum's website is really a natural outcropping of our mission," Dr. Sabloff noted. "First is archaeological and anthropological research around the world. Secondly, our collections, which number more than a million objects that have been collected over a 120-year history of the museum. And finally, public education."

08 MAY 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—On Monday, May 14th at 6:00 p.m., the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology offers a special free program, What is Happening Today in Iraq and Afghanistan?, a timely update on cultural heritage and cultural property issues in war-torn Iraq and Afghanistan. Dr. Richard Zettler, Curator-in-charge, Near East Section, Penn Museum, and Dr. Fredrik Hiebert of the National Geographic Society, a Research Associate at Penn Museum, share their perspectives at this program, co-sponsored by the Center for Ancient Studies and the Middle East Center, University of Pennsylvania:

02 MAY 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—Mongolian Ambassador to the United States Ravdan Bold, and Mongolia’s former Ambassador to the United Nations Dr. J. Enksaikhan, will be among several speakers at a free public forum, From Genghis Khan and the Mongol Empire to Mongolia’s Place in the World Today, Thursday, 10 May 2007 from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the Rainey Auditorium at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, 3260 South Street in Philadelphia.

07 MAY 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA–Children and their families are treated to a wide range of international music, dance, and theater this summer, when the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology presents its Summer Wonder 2007 Performance Series. Eight Summer Wonder programs, all free with Museum admission, run Wednesday mornings, June 27 through August 15, at 10:30 a.m. Performances last about one hour. Pre-registration is required for groups of 10 or more.

07MAY 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—-Dr. Andrea Baldeck became the latest recipient of the Angell Medal—-so named in honor of Marian Angell Godfrey Boyer—established by the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology to honor distinguished service to Penn Museum by a Museum supporter. Dr. Jeremy A. Sabloff, Interim Director of the University of Pennsylvania Museum, surprised Ms. Baldeck, an active, long-time Penn Museum member of the Board of Overseers and Penn Museum benefactor, with the award at the May 3rd Board Meeting.

“Over these years, Andrea, you have shared with us your time, your wisdom and your strength of character,” said Dr. Sabloff. “We can never thank you appropriately, but please accept this award—the Angell Medal—in honor of your distinguished service to the Museum.”

17 MAY 2007, PHILADELPHIA, PA—-Susan W. Catherwood was named Penn Museum’s “Volunteer of the Year” for 2007. Dr. Jeremy A. Sabloff, Interim Director of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, announced the award at the Museum’s annual Volunteer Luncheon on April 23rd.

“Susan Catherwood is a wonderful champion of Penn Museum, and a tireless volunteer who continues to contribute her time and talents to furthering the Museum’s outreach, research and educational mission,” noted Dr. Sabloff. “Museum volunteers are at the backbone of what this unique Penn cultural institution is and does, and Susan exemplifies the intelligence and dedication that make our volunteers—-more than 250 of them working in all areas of the Museum—-so valuable.”